As Certain Dark Things Are Loved
by The Druid Is In
Summary: Eddie and Ginny meet in a pet store she manages and start to spend more and more time together, initially as friends. Ginny and a mysterious being relegated to the shadows who she calls "White-Eyes" exchange gifts at night. This is their story.
1. ShockHello

Hey all. This is my multi-chapter Venom fanfiction. As of right now, it is SFW, though that may change as the story progresses. For ease of access, the story will be available across platforms on AO3 and on here as well as my tumblr .

* * *

One: Shock||Hello

Virginia Marie Lovegood worked at the family-owned pet store down the road from where she lived, a little place called _The Ark._ The family was Catholic, and they had hired her because they took it as a good omen that she had been named so similarly to the Virgin Mary. She shook her head, smirking in amusement since both of her mothers were non-Catholics who each named her after one of their grandmothers (although those grandmothers _had_ been Catholic), and who had both mutually chosen a new last name for them all. She avoided conversations about her family, lying and saying they weren't close when in reality she loved her mothers but wanted to keep her job—the family paid her extra both since they saw her as a pious saint and because she had proven capable and trustworthy enough to manage the store on her own when required, having worked there for 2 years. The family had another business across town that needed much more personal oversight, so having someone they trusted look after everything, and in some cases close, helped them immensely.

When a lull in activity came, she made her rounds, facing and restocking products, spot-sweeping the floor, tending to and checking on the animals. She heard the bell on the door jingle from the back where she was pulling down hay to change out the rabbit bedding, but she had a box balanced on the edge of a shelf overhead, so opted for finishing lowering it as quickly as she could rather than pushing it back. "I'll be right with you!" Ginny called out, hefting the box to the floor with a huff. She dusted her hands off on her apron and emerged from the back to see a man squatting down amongst the puppies, letting them sniff and lick his hands. They seemed particularly interested in him, more so than normal even for the friendly, sociable, outgoing pups.

"Would you like to see one in particular?" Ginny asked, coming up near him, but not too close. You never knew what people were like, who wanted to rob you or who had PTSD. She took the time before he responded to study him. He had dark curly hair stopping by his ears, and when he looked up at her, she saw that he had facial hair of the same shade, with blue-green eyes. He was dressed casually in a hoodie and jeans.

"No," he said, voice soft and even. "I just wanted to come by and pet the puppies. I hope that's okay?"

"Yeah, it is," Ginny shrugged. "I'm Ginny, the store manager on duty. Let me know if you need anything."

He nodded, curiously watching her drift away to check on the kittens and rabbits. "The last time I came here three years ago you didn't work here, did you?"

"No," Ginny responded, pushing a few strands of her black hair behind her ear then picking up a kitten from the bin, "I started two years ago." She leaned against the wall, kitten held against her as she stroked its silky little head. It clung to her, purring loudly and making biscuits on her chest. She was thankful for the thick apron to keep the tiny needle-sharp claws from stabbing her.

"Are you related to the DiLaurentis family?" The man asked, letting one of the puppies crawl into his lap. It licked his hand and he scratched underneath its chin, smiling down at it.

Ginny shook her head. "No, they hired me because of some sort of religious superstition around my name, and they promoted me because I'm the only one they can trust to do the job right who's not a part of the family."

The man hummed, rubbing just behind the puppy's ears and ignoring when it nipped at the cuff of his sleeve. "Is old Feliciano still alive? He used to always talk with me about my cat, Delilah."

"Yes, but he let Florencia take over the business with her husband, Veneziano, and the kids."

"And how are Veneziano and Florencia? The last time I spoke to either of them they only had the one, Magdalena."

"Well, now they have another one, Marcellus."

"I guess time really flies, huh?"

Deciding the man probably didn't mean her any harm, she sat near him on the floor. The kitten stared at the puppy with wide eyes and they sniffed each other before promptly begging for more scratches from their respective humans. Silence settled and for a few minutes they just sat in each other's company. "I guess so. What's your name, anyway?"

He glanced up at her, hand rubbing up and down the pup's stomach. "Eddie. It's short for Edward."

Ginny smiled. "Ginny is short for Virginia. Virginia-Marie, actually, but most people don't bother with all of that."

"Ah. I'm actually Edward Charles, but you're right, most people don't bother with either middle names or the second half of hyphenated names."

Ginny was about to say something else when her phone rang. She fished it out, and, seeing that it was Florencia, promptly answered. "Hello? Florencia, slow down, what's the matter?"

Eddie watched as the woman across from him frowned softly, her forehead creasing, the expression completely altering her pretty face. She had long, thick black hair, dark eyes with an epicanthic fold, golden brown skin. She listened intently for a full minute before speaking. "You can't come by for closing tonight or any night this week?" She worried her lip and slipped more stray hair behind her ears again. "Okay, I'll see what I can do. Do you mind if I bring something with me to protect myself?" The kitten stood up in her lap and batted her for attention until she started petting it again. "Great, thanks for understanding. And yeah, Bear will be with me."

Seemingly at the sound of his name, "Bear" materialized around the corner. He was a chocolate Labrador, though his eyes showed that he was far more intelligent than average. He came up to Eddie, snuffling along his arm. He stuck his nose into Eddie's hand, and investigated the puppy's head before ambling over to Ginny and laying down, putting his head on her leg. His eyes stayed on the kitten, which shrank back from him initially but whose curiosity got the better of it in the end.

Ginny hung up and sighed, running a hand through her hair. She pocketed her phone and placed her newly freed hand on Bear's head, seemingly relaying her conversation to him, although of course Eddie could still hear her speaking being in such close proximity. "Not only will no one be relieving me during the day, I have to close, too." She pursed her lips. " _But_ ," she amended, "they're on reduced hours. They're opening an hour later and closing an hour earlier, and paying me double and a half for all the fuss, thank gods." Bear whined sympathetically and butted his head against her hand. She scratched one of his ears affectionately. "Don't worry. I'll have more time to play with you outside of work." Bear's tail wagged excitedly at the word 'play' and his ears perked.

Eddie smiled to himself, curiosity getting the better of him. "Why are they leaving so much of running the store to you this week?"

Ginny sighed again, hating to be the bearer of bad news. "Apparently we jinxed Feliciano. He had a massive heart attack about an hour ago and the family is staying with him at the hospital. Without me they would be closing down completely this week."

"Well shit," Eddie said, feeling like an ass.

"'Well shit' is right, it's a fucking tragedy," Ginny muttered. She didn't notice the small inky band morph into a tendril that snaked out to investigate the puppy, or the puppy investigating it. When she looked at Eddie, the inky tendril had returned to looking like a harmless elastic band on his wrist.

"Sorry if that language offends you, but he's not even dead and it's hitting the family really hard, ya know? Florencia already lost her mother so recently to breast cancer."

"Yeah, I know—well, not about Giuliana having cancer, but about how hard it must be hitting the family, since they're all so close," he said, staring down at his wrist. He put the puppy back into the bin and stood, dusting himself off. Ginny followed suit with the kitten, Bear standing with her. He trotted over and sniffed at Eddie again, then disappeared around the end of an aisle.

"Heading out?" She didn't know why, but she felt oddly comfortable and safe around the customer, and almost didn't want to see him leave.

He glanced at her, smiled, and nodded wordlessly.

She held her hand out to him. "Well, you're welcome back any time, Eddie."

"Thanks, Ginny. If you'll allow it, I might just come back and keep you company sometime this week." Eddie took her hand to shake, but when he did, an electric shock bolted through her hand and up her arm to her shoulder. He stared down at her hand in shock, eyes wide. "Did you feel...what the hell?"

"Yeah," Ginny gasped before composing herself. "Some sort of shock. Static, maybe. Happens all of the time, doesn't it?"

Eddie paused, feeling Them thinking yet blocking Their thoughts from him at the moment. "Yeah," he heard his own doubt and uncertainty. "Static." He tried to bring his smile back but could only muster a nervous grimace, but Ginny seemed not to notice, too preoccupied with her own thoughts at that moment as she stared at her own hand. "I'll see you, then."

Ginny refocused on him, watching him leave, an odd feeling settling in the back of her mind. The shock had unsettled both of them, she could tell. Both of them had clearly felt it, judging by his reaction, and both of them knew it wasn't static, but what else could it have been?

* * *

Just to check in, in my mind either Ginny is the adoptive child of both mothers in a queer couple, or the biological child of one woman and adoptive child of the other.


	2. ChocolateComfort

**A/N: TW/CW homophobic slur by minor antagonist, tw racial slur by same antagonist. The words are not fully written out: the vowels have been starred out with asterisk. The words also only appear once each. Reader discretion still advised. I put an X before and after the paragraph where this occurs. You may skip it if it is too upsetting to read. Also note that the views of the antagonist are NOT shared by the author. TW mention of death and suicide, but no actual death or suicide occur.**

* * *

Two: Chocolate||Comfort

Ginny closed up early, making sure the new, if temporary, hours were posted in the widow and on the door. She also had a copy of the current schedule on her phone. She started down the street with Bear just behind and to the side of her, trotting along obediently at heel. He was a good, loyal, understanding companion, well-trained and protective. She was lucky that the DiLaurentis family allowed him into the shop. Then again, Bear had perfect manners, as long as she wasn't threatened. Despite being a breed with a sweet temperament, a part of his training was still to defend on command. Her mothers had made sure of that. He wasn't an official service dog, but he _was_ trained to perform small, general tasks for Ginny, and to help her out when she needed it.

She picked up dinner and took it back to her apartment, dropping it off and changing into her exercise clothes. She always dressed in baggy, androgynous running gear: sweatpants, baggy sweatshirt with the hood up and her braid tucked into the collar, non-flashy shoes. She and Bear set out, doing a 20-minute circuit. She always made sure to vary her routes so she never went the same way either during the same day, if she ran more than once in a single day, or on consecutive days. She made sure there was no pattern, no rhyme or reason, in how she chose which route to take, and she always varied it a little. A knife rested in her pocket, another strapped to her ankle and yet another strapped to her arm. She took no chances.

She quickly put herself and her four-legged companion through their paces, though her concentration nearly faltered at one point when she thought she saw a pair of white eyes gleaming as they peered at her through the dark, but when she really looked, there was nothing there. She thought she saw the eyes a few more times along their route, but each time when she looked closer there was still nothing. Her run was otherwise uneventful, an at the end she led them home without thinking much about it. She shucked her shoes off at the door, making sure to clean Bear's paws too. She wiped him down with a cloth wet with cold water, set food out for him, then went and showered. When she came back, she retrieved the food she had procured earlier and flopped onto the couch to eat it. Bear came over and lay down by her feet contentedly. Once she finished her meal, she read for a bit, then cleaned up and went to bed. Bear followed her, settling on the floor by the foot of her bed. She fell asleep quickly, exhausted, and had dreams about gleaming white eyes staring at her from the darkness.

* * *

Ginny woke up before sunrise, and they went on another run. This time she didn't notice any eyes along her path. She paced herself, taking her time, going for distance and endurance rather than speed and intensity. She used the extra time left before work to go further before circling back home, where she took care in stretching out her leg muscles. After getting ready for the day with another shower and breakfast, she realized she still had time to kill, so she decided to sit on her balcony to watch the sun rise.

She fixed herself a cup of tea and took it out with her, a shawl draped over her shoulders. She looked up at the sky, which was a milky blue grey of the precursor to pre-dawn light. Eventually, though, her eyes strayed to the tree line of the park down below, situated directly across from her apartment. At first her gaze moved idly over the curves of shadow not yet touched by the light of day, but something jangled on her senses and forced her to look again and again until it hit her: a pair of gleaming white eyes staring back at her from the top of one of the trees. She jumped, swearing under her breath. They were the same eyes she thought she saw last on her evening jog, and the same ones she dreamt about when she went to bed.

She leaned forward, both unsettled and fascinated. The eyes seemed to be staring directly at her. _No,_ she realized. The eyes weren't just looking at her, though, they were matching her gaze with their own. A shiver ran over her, and though a little creeped-out she found herself more curious than afraid. The unblinking stare remained trained on her until light slowly began creeping over the horizon. Then, the sunrise distracted her, and when she looked back again, the eyes were gone. Fascinated but not fearful, she retreated into her apartment. She grabbed what she needed absentmindedly and herded Bear out of the door from muscle memory, arriving at work and opening the shop in the same thoughtful trance that abated once she got customers in the shop, although she retreated into her mind when she found herself alone again. Her day was slow and uneventful, and her new friend Eddie did not show himself that day. She almost wished he would, so she could speak with him. Even if she could not confide in him, he would be a comforting presence after being unsettled.

After her run that night, she sat on the balcony again, herbal tea and chocolate with her as she stared out at the night. She felt a cold tingle slide down her spine, the kind of feeling you get when someone is watching you, and when she looked down those eyes were back again, full force. It took her a moment to figure out that they had moved closer. She leaned forward, drumming her fingers on the railing, sipping her tea. She set the cup down and brought a square of chocolate to her lips. She would have sworn the eyes moved to her mouth, watched her closely as she ate the little morsel of chocolate, though how she would have known she could not say since she could make out no other features. She had no idea that this would become a regular occurrence, that she would sit out there many nights with the strange eyes watching her. When she went in that night, she didn't know what made her do it, but she left the rest of the chocolate on the table, in plain view. She turned to the eyes gazing at her and spoke as if their owner could hear her. "This is for you," she whispered, feeling foolish. "I'm going to bed, and I won't be back out again tonight. Goodnight, White Eyes." She went to her room, closed the door, and crawled into bed, unaware that this, too, would become a habbit.

* * *

When she checked in the morning, the chocolate was gone. She grinned, unreasonably happy, and set about her day in a surprisingly happy mood. By the time she got to work, whistling, her good mood had not diminished. She still felt inexplicably joyful when Eddie entered, and greeted him warmly, offering him some snacks she had carefully stored behind the counter in a bag-in a box-in a drawer. It would not do to kill some of her charges by leaving out poison for them to find and devour. "Hello, Eddie," she called cheerfully, waving the bag of pretzels around, "would you like some of my chocolate covered pretzels?"

Eddie's lips twitched upward as if he somehow found the offer amusing. "Hello, Ginny, and sure, I'd love some." He hummed good-naturedly, holding out his hand for her to shake some of the pretzels out of the packet and into his palm. He popped them into his mouth, a contented noise sounding in his throat. He swallowed, hand reaching out to accept more when she offered again. "Any updates with the family?" Florencia had texted her earlier in her shift, and seemed pleased that Eddie had returned to town and shown up at the shop again after so many years. She remembered her father talking about him, and trusted him to not be a serial killer, which was a bit of a relief for the cautious Ginny.

"No, unfortunately nothing much has changed," she sighed, filling him in on the relevant part of the conversation she had with Florencia and finishing with the woman's desire that as many people as possible pray on her father's behalf. Ginny eyed the flakes of chocolate littering his fingers and grinned. "You know, I have a few extra packs if you'd like one. I always keep a few stocked in my stash so I don't starve when I can't leave this place. Our busy periods might not be as hectic as a big retail outlet or a fast-food joint, but there are times when I can barely get in time to have a breath to myself."

Eddie's eyes lit up but he seemed almost apologetic. "I couldn't possibly take all of your chocolate. You've already given me quite a bit." Now he stated down at the chocolate residue on his hands, almost guilty seeming but clearly wanting more.

Ginny drew herself up. "Well now I insist. No one should be deprived of food they love."

She reached into her hiding spot and withdrew an unopened packet, which she presented to him. Eddie seemed to hesitate, but only for a moment. He plucked the packet out of her hand, somehow managing to avoid touching any of her skin. She noticed but didn't let it bother her. Maybe he didn't want to her shocked again, or maybe he was a germaphobe. He didn't seem like the racist-minded type, especially given how kind he had been to her so far. She shrugged it off, busying herself with checking inventory behind the counter as he tore open the packet on the spot and dug in. He stayed at the shop with her for an hour before he left, and he came back again in the evening. He showed up the next day, and the next, with the same regularity that White Eyes showed up in the trees near her apartment building, making Eddie and White Eyes the constant companions in her life besides Bear.

They chatted about anything and everything, really getting to know each other, their preferences, their thought and feelings, their interests: books they'd both read and movies they liked; knitting and handicrafts; baking; botany and ecology; politics, religion, animals. Towards the end of the week, they were talking about the ways both of them preferred to exercise, surprised they both had a fondness for swimming and weightlifting, when the bell on the door chimed, signaling the arrival of a customer. Ginny looked up, heart sinking as she saw who it was. Eddie noticed the change in her body language—how she stiffened and closed off, shut down, really—but said nothing.

X

"Welcome to _The Ark_ , haven for domesticated creatures. How might we assist you today?" She hardly ever used a script with customers unless she had to make an effort to be professional. In this case, it took everything in her not to throw out the nasty piece of work that had entered the shop. It was a young woman she had gone to middle and high school with, a snotty, elitist, racist and bigoted girl named Maureen Pierce who said she disliked Ginny for her "f*g*tty mothers and ch*nky eyes". She had bullied Ginny relentlessly for her race and family makeup, and gotten her group of friends, which really amounted to her sadistic cult of followers, to do the same until Ginny's mothers finally persuaded her in tenth grade to change schools once she came home in frustrated tears more often than not.

X

Ginny held her head high, not afraid, not ashamed, but not willing to be goaded. Eddie watched a mask descend over her features as she put on her sweetest, most convincing smile, one he knew from being around her all week was not like the one she usually wore around him, or even most customers. Maureen didn't seem to immediately realize who was behind the counter, or even to have really heard Ginny. She browsed the dog toys, grabbing one quickly and rushing to the counter. She slammed it down and dug into her purse as if in a great hurry. "My friend is holding my dog outside. He lost his toy on the way to the dog park and needs a new one."

Wordlessly Ginny reached out, grabbed the toy, scanned it, and slid it back to Maureen, who finally looked at her as she waited for the price, cash in hand. Her eyes widened minutely, taking Ginny in from head to toe, seemingly realizing who she was instantly. Of course, Maureen being Maureen, she said the most insensitive or offensive thing that came to mind first. "Oh my god, you're that Lovegood girl from forever ago! We always thought you killed yourself or something since you disappeared so suddenly!"

Ginny smirked, somehow keeping the look pleasant and angelic while on camera. Her voice when she spoke, still appearing sweet, dripped with sardonic glee. "Unfortunately for you, no. I just graduated top of my class at the school I moved to instead. Actually, come to think of it, I joined the swim team when I transferred, and when I graduated I was captain, with medals to my name. I got a full-ride to Stanford, graduated early from there with honors and a double major—again at the top of my class— got my master's degree, and am now a best-selling author. Perhaps you've even heard of me under my pseudonym _Nimüe Winterbloom_?"

Maureen had grown considerably paler by the time Ginny finished, her skin turning an uglier, pastier white the longer Ginny went on with it. Rather than responding, she simply snatched up the toy and ran out of the shop, very obviously turning tail and fleeing. Ginny still had that serene, angelic look about her. She held it for a few minutes after that, until she was sure that Maureen wouldn't be returning. She wanted to hold it longer because she felt the tears hiding behind her wall, laying bare on her real face, and she didn't want Eddie to see her cry, or to have to explain why she would be.

Eddie, however, apparently a pretty perceptive person, cleared his throat. "You don't have to tell me what happened between the two of you before," he started, "but I'm...here, if you need me."

"Thank you, that's kind," she murmured, rearranging an already perfect display to keep her hands busy and give her a chance to turn her back to him so he couldn't see her break down and cry. She was used to crying silently, so it surprised her when his hand tentatively touched her upper arm. A shock hit her like before, causing her to pause momentarily. Eddie took the moment to coax her into turning to him. He caught her first tear as it slid from her eye, and suddenly she was telling him everything through a deluge, about the cruel harassment and abuse in school, about how those students made sure to pursue and torment her in places beside school like the mall in their district, made sure to make it impossible for her to join a club or sport since a lot of Maureen's cronies were dispersed throughout the school teams and could block her from membership, made sure she felt unwanted and unwelcome any and everywhere.

"I hate her," she hissed fiercely, "I hate her so much. All she did was cause me grief. She made my school and social life a living hell." And she told him what Maureen had told her as to why she didn't like her, and this time it was Ginny who saw a shift in Eddie. A flare, a flash, of _something_ in his eyes, an unnatural stillness, his nostrils flaring, his fists clenching. And then the demeanor vanished as soon as it had come when she touched her hand to his arm hesitantly, like a short-lived shower on an otherwise sunny day.

"But you're okay now?" Eddie asked, his voice off, strained, _different_ somehow. A little rougher and deeper perhaps, tinged with something else, something new. "Now you're safe? She doesn't hurt you anymore?"

"No, she can't. My mothers convinced me to move school in tenth grade and I got away from her. She and her minions didn't and haven't had any contact with me until now." She sighed, not entirely unhappy, a lopsided smirk on her lips. "I don't know that she will be coming back after that, though, with the way she ran away from me with her tail between her legs."

Pure amusement flooded his features, his eyes now shinning. "Ginny, you eviscerated her," he chuckled. "I really do think you broke her. You should have seen her face! And she paled this atrocious paper white color. I thought she might faint right here."

Ginny laughed, her eyes watering. "I'm glad you were here for morale support." She studied his face. "Could I... can I….", she held her arms out and up in the air, and first Eddie did not realize what she meant by the gesture. When he did, he found that there was no resistance from the other inhabitants of his central nervous system. He responded to her hug by returning the gesture, his head resting on top of hers.

"Of course," he and They said to her, together, though Ginny was not aware of Them yet. He could see that on her back, a few tendrils had snaked out from the black band on his wrist to touch her back, her shoulders, and her hair, so delicately that she apparently did not feel it.

He liked her, They liked her. No one would mistreat her ever again. If they did, it would be the last thing that they ever did.

* * *

A/N: Hey all, just to enforce the timeline of the story, Ginny and Eddie have been getting to know each other over the length of a week so far. The reason Eddie appreciated the chocolate (besides liking it himself) is actually connected canonically to some of the comics due to a chemical that the Symbiote craves/needs.


	3. Gift ExchangeMoving On

The week of working as proxy for the family turned into two, then a month, as Feliciano's condition did not improve, and as Florencia grew ill with worry over her father's condition, and had to be put on bed rest. It had been starting to wear on Ginny, even with her being allowed to call in and supervise other workers, acting as a member of the family in their absence. After the month of the hell of totally managing a store on her one, during which Feliciano finally made it out of the woods, the family, thanking her profusely and utterly harried, gave Ginny a week off, if she so chose to take it. She opted to take it, and to use it to spend time with Eddie outside of work and get to know him more. The man had checked in with her nearly every day. It became routine for him to walk her at least part of the way home, which allowed her to stay just a little longer than the shortened hours, but not as long as full hours. She was still the only one trusted enough to open and close when the family continued to be absent from the shop and present around the ailing Feliciano, so no one could relieve her.

On top of that, she had regular visits from White Eyes, who seemed nocturnal. She continued to leave chocolate and other foods and sweets in a box out on her balcony. Occasionally other things found their way there too, like a pair of reusable chopsticks (which she felt silly for), or a small trinket like the palm-sized dragon carved of jade, replica to one she owned, and each and every item continued to be taken. It did not take long until White-Eyes reciprocated, and she found gifts from them to her waiting for when she got up. Sometimes it was small, obviously found items: pretty rocks, shells, feathers. Other times it was different sweets than ones she had given them, ranging from candy to pies and cakes. One time an entire large fruit tart had been left. The next time, she found a set of beautiful drop pearl earrings, another a heavy jade pendant in the shape of a dragon with pearls for eyes and gold accents. Yet another time she found a set of special pens waiting, smudge-resistant ones for someone left-handed like her, and she had no idea how White-Eyes knew, but she didn't question it. The two of them continued to dance around each other, still not having met, and Ginny didn't know how to feel about it all. On one hand she was utterly fascinated and wanted to know more about the mysterious figure, who also might want to want to know more about her, if the gifts were anything to go by, and on the other, she wanted to remain cautious, since anyone could be lulled into a false sense of security and tricked even by an entity they knew well.

She made sure to wear the jewelry any time she was out in her balcony, or under her clothes at work, and she made sure to use the pens for her puzzles. Despite the gifts just showing up, she was not afraid for what they might mean. More surprisingly to her, however, was the fact that Eddie did not once question her about them when he saw them. She knew he wasn't White-Eyes because White-Eyes wasn't human, but it made her wonder about him. Perhaps he thought she had a lover, friend, or family member who had given her some of the gifts. Either that or something far more peculiar had happened to him in his lifetime, in which case she wanted to know more about him even more than she had before.

Tonight, at the end of the most exhausting month of her life bar college finals and end of term work, she locked up with Eddie and Bear at her side. Sometimes she would close and he would be waiting outside, sometimes with food for them. It went unspoken that they followed this ritual. At first she had been averse to letting anyone new into her apartment, no matter how nice they were to her and her dog, and she had kept her smallest, most easily concealed weapons with her while he was there, _just in case,_ even though she felt safe. Just in case, because you could never be too sure with anyone. But nothing bad had happened either then or on successive visits, and she had slowly relaxed. Still, her weapons stayed on her, giving her a sense of security and comfort, especially in her city.

Tonight was no different. They ambled to her home leisurely, side by side, with Bear behind them as usual. Something a customer had brought up earlier came to mind, so she turned to Eddie, thinking out loud. "Have you heard anything about some sort of 'black terror of the night?' Apparently there's someone—or, according to them, _something_ —terrorizing all the criminals." She conveniently neglected to mention the rumors that it supposedly bit off the heads of said criminals.

"Oh? Really? Who told you that?" If she didn't know any better, she would think Eddie sounded guarded, but she had no idea why he would.

"Mrs. Rossi, mainly," she told him, watching out of the corner of her eye as he seemed to be deep in concentration. "But she said Mrs. Chen has seen this being, too."

Eddie considered the news quietly. "Yes, I've heard something similar. Some people are calling it a devil—The Devil or Demon of San Francisco, and also The Butcher, I think—because of what it does to those people."

Ginny shrugged impassively. "I heard it rips them apart, maims them, disembowels them, the like, you know, although it apparently always takes the head—but to be honest, the people that end up on the wrong end of their teeth or claws or what have you probably deserve it. Like that drug dealer selling to tweens, or that pedophile music teacher that got away with molesting his students, or that sick fuck butchering people's dogs and leaving them for kids to find, or the asshole setting fires and not caring if people were inside, or that one disgusting fuck who would rape women and then go back and kill their mothers." She shuddered, not noticing how she wrung her hands spasmodically. "Whoever they are, they're a fucking hero. If what they do makes them a demon or devil, I hate to see what makes an angel."

She felt a prickling sensation on her neck, like the one she got when White-Eyes was around, but when she glanced up and about, no one was walking near their little group. She failed to look at Eddie. If she had, she would use seen a small black wave ripple across his body, then settle. Eddie stared at her intensely, and They stared with him. How interesting that their work did not instantly repulse her. Still, she had grown quite after her impromptu question that drew too close to the truth, and Eddie was content to keep the quiet until they reached her building.

He watched her glance into the trees across from her apartments. Her pendent shone from the light of a street lamp. He knew They had been checking on her each night before and after hunting, both while he slept and while he stayed awake underneath, because they, host and hosted, shared memories, sensations, and basic awareness of the external goings on even while one of them, host or Symbiote, was dormant. He knew that she and The Symbiote had been trading gifts, and knew what it meant to his companion. They were as interested with her as he was. The mutual desire and need to protect her, however, overlapped. Neither he nor They wanted to see her harmed. The thought of the secrets that they harbored while kindling the friendship between them and Ginny caused their pulse to quicken. They cared about her a great deal, but what would she say when she discovered those truths? Would she be able to handle the reality of Venom, of the two of them sharing a body?

Eddie's attention snapped back to the present moment as Ginny led them up to her apartment as usual, opening the door and letting Bear plod past her before slipping in herself. Eddie followed a moment later, able to see perfectly even without the light since Venom had perfect night vision. Ginny flicked the lamp on, moving into the kitchen, feet bare. Bear was waiting patiently near the door for her to wipe his paws clean of the dirt from outside, as per her usual ritual. A few minutes later, with their hands washed and a tumbler of ice water on the table, they sat down to eat with her. Bear nosed around noisily in his bowl in the kitchen. Ginny drew her knees up on her chest, her takeout balanced on her knees and a pair of cheap disposable chopsticks in hand. She started anxiously tapping the chopsticks together _tick-tick-tick_ and bit her lip.

"I wanted to confess something," she said nervously, looking at him from underneath a fine fringe. She picked through her rice for a piece of ham and popped it into her mouth, chewing it thoughtfully. "I think I've been feeding... _something_...no, _someone..._ maybe both. I know a lot of people would think that it's idiotic or insane to believe in the Fair Folk, but it's a part of the beliefs I was raised with, and, well...animals might eat food related gifts, but they don't give them in return, and they don't give you...other things. They don't leave...books and jewelry and little trinkets. But fey do, and spirits might…" Ginny ducked her head self-consciously, waiting for judgement. Over the month she had known Eddie, he had not seemed like the overly-judgmental or critical type over things like this, but you could never be too sure how people would take alternative belief systems that did not adhere to the mainstream.

She had no idea of the effect she had on Eddie, who almost stopped breathing and choked on his spring roll at the same time. He could feel Venom underneath his skin listening, The Symbiote coiling about this way and that apprehensively, apparently as nervous as he felt himself. He hopped she hadn't noticed his reaction, and if she had he hoped she hadn't taken it as a sign of disbelief or ridicule. He took a few swigs of water while she stared into her rice contemplatively. What was he to do, really? What could he say to reassure her? What would make her feel less crazy without revealing the truth. "Have you seen this being?" he finally responded, carefully wording the question. He knew she hadn't _really_ seen, but he wanted her to talk more about the encounters. He wanted to know her thoughts and feelings, and he knew that the Symbiote did too.

She shook her head. "Just their eyes. They gleam white in the darkness, like stars on bone. I only see them at early evening just after sunrise or early morning just before dawn. Actually," here she chuckled, amusement coloring the afterthought. "I've been calling them White-Eyes."

Eddie barely felt his thought form before the other consciousness using his seized onto it excitedly. He could have hit himself for asking his next question. He felt like an idiot even before it left his mouth, the answer obvious to him. "Why don't you go see them one night?"

She looked up into his eyes, not knowing that They looked back out at her with him. "I thought about it more than once, but I don't know what I'll find."

"If They like you enough to exchange gifts with you, I doubt They're secretly planning on murdering you," Eddie reasoned.

Ginny ducked her head down further, shrugging. "Maybe, but I have to take precautions" she mumbled. "Thanks for not acting like I'm crazy, though."

"Never," Eddie said, feeling Them agree with him. He reached for her limp hand and gave it a squeeze. "We would never think you were crazy."

"We?" Her head came back up quizzically, cocking to the side.

Eddie swore at himself in his mind. "Me and Bear," he lied quickly, glancing at the dog. "We'll always be on your side, won't we boy? You don't think Ginny is crazy, do you?" Bear came at the sound of his name and laid his head between their laps, staring up at Eddie and Ginny with soft, loving eyes. Ginny reached out and scratched behind his ears, and Bear whined happily.

"He's taken to you," Ginny whispered. "He likes you. He trusts you with me, and his opinion matters a lot to me. He's a good judge of character and intent in people. He wouldn't let you near me if he thought you were all bad."

This time, she reached out and squeezed _his_ hand, _their_ hand, reassuringly. They no longer felt the shocks from when they touched the first few times, but they did feel a mutual pleasant tingle and warmth. It seemed they both felt affection for her. "I'm glad you came into the shop last month, Eddie. I don't know what I would be doing with myself through this whole ordeal without someone by my side who doesn't have four legs, a muzzle, and a tail."

Eddie stared down at their hands, at the black band on his wrist. "Yeah," he said, "I'm glad I went in, too, because we wouldn't have met."

Ginny leaned forward into his chest and wrapped her arms around him in a hug. His arm came up around her shoulders, and just like so many times before, tendrils rose from the band to touch Ginny's back, tiny slivers of inky black, like living shadow. An eye formed in the largest and gazed back at him.

 _I LIKE HER_.

He nodded, disguising it as him laying his head against hers. _We keep her safe above all others,_ Eddie agreed with The Symbiote. _I like her too._

Anne had moved on, so perhaps it was time he did as well.


	4. White-EyesVenom

The next night after Eddie left her apartment, Ginny donned the clothes she reserved for running, sliding a Hershey's bar into her hoodie pocket alongside a wickedly curved blade and a taser. A baggie filled with salt and an iron nail occupied one of her pants pockets, her mothers' warnings echoing in her ears. She grabbed her heavy-duty flashlight and walking staff, then slid into steel-toes boots. They might slow her down a little, but they would protect her vulnerable feet and ankles in the dark. She called Bear to her, clipping him to her waist so they could avoid being separated in the thick darkness underneath the trees. Only a sliver of moon hung in the sky, but she was determined to see if she could find White-Eyes. She had been trying already for a few nights after days spent in Eddie's company, then given up, but his words had sparked a new resolve within her.

After steeling her nerves, she led Bear downstairs, out of the building, and face-to-face with the trees. With one last glance back, she stepped into the gloom. The shadows swallowed her almost instantly. She clicked her light on, taking careful steps, and meandered along the paths. She couldn't be sure she could, or would, find anything, especially since she had already had such rotten luck, but she threaded carefully through the trees, trying to look high and low as far as she could see. She usually searched for about half an hour, going in a broad sweep, until eventually she made her way to the group of trees where she usually saw White-Eyes, but even that led to nothing. Still she traced the same path through the dark, careful of her footing, not conscious of being observed from afar by curious white eyes.

Frustrated once more, she decided to leave when all of a sudden she felt that familiar prickling sensation. Bear's ears pricked, her companion suddenly alert. She stood still, barely breathing, glancing left, right, and up. Not immediately seeing White-Eyes, she gave up, ready to call it a night. As she turned around, however, she caught sight of a pair of unearthly white eyes. She gasped audibly, catching herself from moving backwards and forcing herself to fall motionless. A part of her mind wanted her to run, but another told her that this eye contact was not threatening, so she continued to hold herself still, and to meet the unwavering, fey gaze.

She felt a weight against her leg and knew without looking down that Bear had positioned his body between her and the being in the shadows. He seemed calm, perhaps even curious, but not afraid. Despite that, his instincts still obviously told him to protect her. She waited with baited breath, Bear the only thing stiller than her, seeing what They would do. The warnings about the Fey still rebounded in her mind, even if she knew the being in front of her likely wouldn't be one of them. It wouldn't do to speak before one of the Folk without knowing the full situation. No need to cause...inconveniences...for herself down the road. Sure, she had been taught ways to protect herself, to ward off or expel unfriendly beings, but she didn't want to have to do it, and she was hoping that this would be a friendly, or at least non-threatening, encounter given how White-Eyes had been exchanging gifts with her. She hoped that the reciprocity that They had maintained with her meant that who or whatever White-Eyes was would be as friendly towards her in person as They had been in their exchanges.

Five minutes passed in silence. She started to relax marginally, although still felt unsure as to what to expect. In front of her, Bear had his head cocked to the side as if deep in thought, examining details she could not see clearly. When something did happen, it startled her simply because of the quiet and the dark and the inaction, not because of fear. They spoke to her from the shadows, Their voice a growl. "YOU SHOULD NOT HAVE COME HERE TONIGHT."

It surprised Ginny to hear her own voice break the silence. "Why? Why tonight?"

"BECAUSE IT IS NOT SAFE FOR YOU RIGHT NOW." She almost felt like she heard concern in Their growl.

Ginny lifted an eyebrow in surprise. "You're worried about my safety?"

A pause. "YES."

Ginny seized onto that with interest. "And why might that be?"

"BECAUSE WE WOULD NOT ALLOW HARM TO COME TO YOU." Ginny's stomach churned at Their words, her mind working quickly.

"And why might _that-_?"

"YOU ARE ASKING THE WRONG QUESTION," They interrupted her.

Ginny shrugged, shifting her weight, and decided not to push it since They obviously didn't want to elaborate, and she would appreciate someone looking out for her, though she wondered what They might want in return. She tried to concentrate on the present moment. She and White-Eyes were still the same distance apart from each other. She decided to find out something else instead. She still hadn't seen the face of her new acquaintance, and if she were honest with herself she knew she wanted to, and now she could safely because They had initiated the conversation, and she had yet to see Them. She was relying on the laws of reciprocity that could keep you safe when dealing with the Fey. Even when you weren't, they could come in handy. "You can see me, but I can't see you. So far we've been even, but right now we aren't. I want to see your face. Could you step into the light?"

Silence.

Ginny tried another tactic. "You don't have to hide, and you don't have to be afraid of me—"

"WE ARE NOT AFRAID OF YOU, AND WE ARE NOT HIDING," They interrupted sharply.

"Then come out. Let me see you," Ginny persisted, wondering somewhere in the back of her mind if she were pushing things a bit too far.

" **NO** ," They hissed, "WE CANNOT COME OUT."

Ginny bit back her frustration. "Could I ask why, when we have been on such even terms?"

They chuckled blackly. "BECAUSE THEN YOU WILL BE AFRAID, AND WE DO NOT WANT YOU TO FEAR US."

Ginny's considered that statement curiously. She recovered quickly, shaking her head determinedly. "I don't think that I will be."

The words faded away into more silence, and she watched and waited, Their eyes never leaving her for a second. Minutes passed while she tried to guess what They might be thinking.

"CLOSE YOUR EYES," They said suddenly, making Ginny start.

She cursed herself, but thinking quickly made a request. "Give me your word on your life force that you will not physically harm me or my dog before I look away from you, and that you won't just run away from us, either."

An amused rumble came from Them. "YOU HAVE OUR WORD, MORSEL. NOW CLOSE YOUR EYES."

Ginny nodded, sighing as her eyelids descended. She gave Bear the command not to attack, gave him more leash-length, and called for him to back off but stay close. She heard no sound from White-Eyes, no matter how much she strained. A few seconds passed like that, until she had the sensation of someone being very close to her. She forced herself to try to be at ease despite the sensation. She might not fear White-Eyes, but the sensation was unnerving all the same. "DO NOT MOVE," They said inches from her, and she could not hide her jump.

"Fucking hell!" Ginny gasped, a little exasperated. They made a noise of amusement.

"WALK WITH US," They purred. "THERE IS A SMALL BREAK IN THE BRANCHES A FEW FEET AWAY, WHERE THE MOONLIGHT SHINES TO THE GROUND."

"No spiriting one of us away," Ginny replied sternly, because the last thing she needed was to be abducted to the Otherworld. "I need your word on that too."

"YOU HAVE IT," They responded, "NOW LET US LEAD YOU TO THE LIGHT."

A large hand wrapped itself gently around her wrist, another descending onto her shoulder. She felt the tip of what felt like a long claw of a nail gently tap her skin, though it did not hurt her. She allowed herself to be led over a few steps, then felt herself being pulled to a gentle stop.

"YOU MAY OPEN YOUR EYES NOW," They whispered in directly into her ear, and for some reason unknown to her Their voice sent a wave of warmth through her. Not knowing what she would see, she did so. She immediately realized that They still stood beside her, but sensed rather than saw when they moved off through the gloom, sliding through shadows to be on the other side of the pool of light, at the edge just beyond its reach. Their eyes glowed through the gloom like two moons shining together on earth. A few seconds passed, and she actually felt like they were hesitating before They stepped into the light, and she really saw Them, all of Them and not just Their eyes, for the first time.

At first it was difficult to pick out Their form even with the aid of the direct moonlight because They looked almost like a living shadow, but once her eyes adjusted, Ginny soon distinguished a hulking dark figure emerging, blacker than night, as black and shimmering as obsidian. They cautiously closed the short distance step by step. Their mouth opened, revealing dozens of wickedly sharp white teeth all ending in jagged points. An exceedingly lengthy tongue snaked out, movements serpentine. Their face had a unique, near-reptilian quality to it, Their hands ending in long black claws. They started rising higher, and Ginny realized that they had been crouching over to conceal their true height, being nearly eight feet tall. The crouch had also concealed the white markings on Their chest. Again They stopped short of reaching her, as if wanting to keep some distance between them. "NOW YOU SEE US."

Just then, the moon passed behind a cloud, casting even the clearing into darkness temporarily. White-Eyes seemed even more like an apparition then, like an enormous Cheshire Cat, only eyes and mouth and markings. The moon re-emerged as Ginny continued assessing White-Eyes. They examined her too, with a clear, lucid, highly intelligent gaze. She knew immediately that even if They had never spoken to her she could never have thought Them an animal or other beast. They were clearly a sentient, sapient being, and more than that, a _person_ , rather than a creature or an intelligent animal. If there were souls, They definitely had one. It startled her to realize that she had been feeling drawn to Them underneath everything, as if an invisible thread pulled them together. Any residual anxiety dissolved as she continued being in close proximity to Them, thinking that They had proven that she could trust them not to hurt her, because if They wanted to They had every opportunity to do so. Not only did They know where she lived and regularly came up directly to her apartment while she slept to exchange the gifts, but had convinced her to close her eyes and let Them lead her mere moments before, and then, as now, the two of them were entirely alone. She could disappear and no one would be the wiser as to how or when, but she instinctually knew They wouldn't just whisk her away.

"I see you," Ginny whispered, causing White-Eyes to purr in response. "And I brought something for you." She leaned her walking stick against the closest tree trunk and dug around in her pocket for the Hershey's bar. She held it out to Them. They carefully reached out to accept it, quickly unwrapping it and shoving it into Their maw whole.

"THANK YOU," White-Eyes said, surprising her, Their long tongue swiping Their teeth clean.

It made her feel bold enough to ask what she really wanted to know. She really couldn't keep calling Them 'White-Eyes', and if They really were Fey then it was Their own fault for making themselves indebted to her. "What are you called?"

To her surprise, They answered her without hesitation. "WE ARE VENOM."

"You may call me Ginny," Ginny replied carefully, still keeping to those ingrained formalities.

Venom's monstrous grin lit up Their face. They seemed to want to say more when Their head snapped toward the east. "WE MUST GO," THEY HISSED. "WE WILL RETURN YOU TO YOUR HOME."

"Return me home? Okay, let me get—" They placed her walking stick into her hand, and she quickly called Bear to her, noticing that Bear seemed pleased to see Them.

"CLIMB ONTO MY BACK," They commanded, kneeling down so she could get up. "I WILL HOLD YOUR SMALL PREDATOR COMPANION." Ginny blinked, nonplussed, but complied, tucking her stick underneath her arm against her side. She clambered onto Their back, settling between Their shoulders, and watched as Their skin shimmered and shifted, stretching and changing to cover her and hold her to Their back. It was an odd sensation and an odd experience, but she didn't have much time to think about it. They picked up Bear in one arm and vaulted into the trees, her startled yelp lost to the shadows as she clung to Them. They moved quickly, jumping tree-to-tree at lightning speed in a path directly toward her building. When the group reached the tree line, much faster than she would have on foot, They leaped to the ground, kneeling once more. The skin holding her released her and she shimmied off of Their back onto the ground, where Bear stood waiting. They seemed to be in a hurry, so she quickly made her way up the front steps of her building and to the door. She looked back with one foot over the threshold, but They had already gone.


End file.
